Summer Rolls Round 2 – Filling Ideas and Sauces!
Have a Labor Day cookout to go to and not sure what to bring? Procrastinating again (me too)? I have a great idea for you, and your friends will think that you have been planning these for weeks. If you have already checked out my Vietnamese Summer Rolls post and tried the recipe, then you already know how awesome these summer rolls are. Light, delicious, exotic, AMAZING…I just love these.
I hardly ever make a recipe the exact same way twice, especially one like this.
In this post I wanted to show you a few different variations of summer rolls that I made recently to help you get your own creative juices flowing. I am not going to really post a “recipe” for the rolls (put stuff that you like into rice paper, roll it up), but I will share with you the filling ingredients I used AND bonus: the recipes for my three favorite dipping sauces for these. Check out the original post for instructions on how to fill these and work with the rice paper (easy-peasy, click here for instructions).
Check out these pretty little things:
So what is in these summer rolls? These summer rolls all have cooked thin rice noodles, Thai basil, mint, and cilantro in them. The fruits and vegetables are different in each one. Some of the combos that I liked the best were: strawberry and mango, cucumber, radish, and mango, strawberry and avocado, and radish, mango, and avocado. Really any combinations of fruits, veggies, and herbs would be delicious. Be creative and eat what you like. The only key to making these work is slicing the fruits and vegetables very thinly. I use a mandolin for this, but you could certainly do it with a sharp knife.
If you are going to make these for a cookout you can do the prep work the night before, but roll them up the day of your event. They keep best individually wrapped in plastic wrap and kept in an air tight container. If that is too much work you (I get it, you don’t have all day) you can also line them up on a glass dish that you have sprayed with cooking spray. Don’t allow them to touch one another and lay a damp paper towel over them followed by another piece of plastic wrap, then cross your fingers that they don’t tear. FYI, the rice paper and rice noodles harden a little with refrigeration so make them as close to serving time as possible. I usually cut them in half and serve them with dipping sauce.
Speaking of dipping sauce…my “taste tester” is really into dipping sauces. I have seen him use 6 dipping sauces at one meal, it’s a little bit out of control. That said, I made 3 dipping sauces for these summer rolls…I guess he is rubbing off on me (?!?). Pick your favorite or try all three. Here are your options: spicy rice vinegar sauce with chopped peanuts, creamy Thai peanut sauce, and soy sesame sauce.
Happy eating and best health,
Dr. G
Ingredients
Soy Sesame Sauce:
- 2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce (tamari or liquid aminos work here too)
- juice of 1/2 lime
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp water (to taste, use to adjust for saltiness)
- 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 1 tsp agave nectar, to taste
Spicy Rice Vinegar sauce with Chopped Peanuts:
- 4 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp Siracha sauce
- juice of 1/2 lime
- 1 tsp agave nectar to taste
- handful of unsalted, dry roasted peanuts, chopped fine
Thai Peanut Sauce:
- 1.5 tbsp smooth peanut butter (salt and sugar free preferred)
- 3 tbsp warm water
- juice and zest of 1/2 lime
- 1 tbsp Siracha sauce
Instructions
- Whisk all ingredients for each sauce together until well combined.
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